Today, the 51st Board of Directors of E.DSO gathered in Nice and has appointed Charles Esser as the new Secretary General, following the notice for resignation announced by Roberto Zangrandi during the June Board of Directors. Mr Esser is currently Secretary General of CEER, the Council of European Energy Regulators, and will join E.DSO as of December 4th. Roberto Zangrandi and his successor will work together for one month to guarantee a proper handover in the organisation. The Chairmanship Team of E.DSO has conducted the selection of the new Secretary General in the past months.
Charles Esser has been with CEER for over six years and Secretary General since April 2019. Previously, he was an independent consultant and journalist, an analyst with the International Energy Agency, the International Crisis Group in Brussels and the U.S. Energy Information Administration. “I am pleased and honored that the E.DSO Board of Directors have placed their trust in me to lead their Secretariat, following in the impressive footsteps of Mr Zangrandi. I look forward to starting with E.DSO in December and continuing its role as a strong voice for electricity DSOs in Europe.”
Roberto Zangrandi joined E.DSO in 2015 as a Special Advisor from the Enel Group of Italy. He was appointed Secretary General in early 2017. “I feel very much relaxed in the choice made for my succession. Charles is a trusted colleague and an extremely reputed professional”, he said, “and will bring his profound competence and knowledge to corroborate even more E.DSO as the unique, strong representative of the industrial and entrepreneurial value of its members, all first-tier actors in the European electric power distribution system.” Zangrandi also added: “I follow the DSO world evolution since over 20 years and actively took part in the creation of E.DSO since the very beginning: I’m positive in thinking their role will maintain and develop the crucial importance they demonstrated in enabling technological progress and the energy transition, otherwise impossible without advanced distributions grids.” Starting next January, Roberto Zangrandi will join Hightech Partners, an advanced technology, digital consultancy, and executive search international firm in Brussels.
Christian Buchel, Chair of E.DSO, warmly thanked Roberto for the tremendous work carried out in the last 8 years for the sake of leading DSOs in 19 European countries. “Now I am delighted to welcome Charles who will bring to E.DSO his relevant experience in the energy sector and his ability to leverage the commitment of all Members for the energy transition in Europe.”
Read Roberto Zangrandi’s message on LinkedIn.
